Everything That Dies, Some Day Comes Back

This film about a real-life serial killer (from the 1960s) suffers from a huge handicap in that it is bound to suffer in comparison with the masterpiece that is 'Zodiac'. On the other hand I figured it should have a couple of things going for it. Firstly, whereas the Zodiac killer was never caught, the Boston Strangler was , so at least there should be a satisfying conclusion to the police investigation (spoiler alert, as per usual I was completely wrong in thinking this) Secondly, the hunt for the Strangler is shown here from the viewpoint of a woman journalist, so we get the added dimension of the misogyny she suffers is trying to pursue the story, because (shock horror) women weren't meant to do that sort of thing then.   The journalist in question is Loretta MacLaughlin, played by Keira Knightley.  For some reason I always struggle to lose myself in any of her performances, which is certainly the case here because throughout the question was nagging away at me as to w...

In ‘Jaws’, his third film, Steven Spielberg provided a masterclass in suspense, but in ‘Duel’, his debut feature, he had already given ample proof of his proficiency in this genre. Taking a short story by Richard Matheson, Spielberg wrings every last ounce of jeopardy from a conflict between a car driver and a truck driven by a virtually invisible driver. It’s a primal battle with an almost mythic air about it, a stripped down battle with no fat on its bones. The unfortunate driver is David Mann, a salesman played by Dennis Weaver. In an early scene he phones his wife to try to clear the air after an argument they have had, because he didn’t do enough, as she sees it, to ‘defend her honour’ at a party. This short conversation, showing us that he is henpecked, together with his surname, suggests that a subtext is going to be his need to prove his manhood. This interpretation is supported by the fact that throughout he is ineffectual in his dealings with people, and that he is not treate...

This 1950 Western starring James Stewart and directed by Delmer Dave’s is a landmark film in terms of its sympathetic portrayal of Native Americans.  Admittedly the main Native American characters are played by white actors but hey, Rome wasn’t built in a day. It’s loosely based on real events, mainly the negotiations that ended the Apache Wars. It is narrated by Stewart who plays Tom Jefford, who played a key role in those negotiations through his friendship with the Apache leader Cochise. A film about peace negotiations may not sound riveting but it did enough to hold my interest. It helps of course to have Stewart at the centre as someone weary of killing, and who is prepared to put up with accusations of being a traitor to white Americans or an ‘Apache-lover’. There are some action sequences because whilst the negotiations are in progress there’s still a war going on; and once the peace treaty is signed there are people on both sides who still want to fight. To add to the drama...

The only Rambo film I had seen prior to this was the fourth (confusingly entitled 'Rambo') which is nothing to write home about, but I felt I should give this first film in the franchise a go since it was a huge commercial hit and the critics didn't hate it. Assuming this film is accurate it was a shock to me how badly Vietnam veterans were treated at this time (early 1980s).   John Rambo (Sylvester Stallone) trudges weary and hungry into a Pacific Northwest town (ironically named Hope) somewhat downhearted because he’s just learned that an ex-comrade he was hoping to reconnect with has died of cancer. You might think the locals would be friendly, but no, no t a bit of it - straightaway the  sheriff makes it clear ‘his sort’ is not welcome by driving him to the town limits and telling him that there’s a diner 30 miles up the highway. When Rambo then starts back into town he’s arrested on a made-up charge, and then abused at the local station. This triggers his PTSD, causi...

This 1939 film is the first collaboration between Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, so  I was quite prepared for it to be a bit odd, but I didn't expect the first half of it to be quite as disorientating as it was. The year is 1917, and the two main characters are a German U-boat commander, Hardt (played by Conrad Veidt) and Fräulein Tiel (Valerie Hobson), his contact in an espionage plot to destroy a significant proportion of the British Fleet at Scapa Flow. She is pretending to be a schoolteacher,  Miss Burnett, on the Orkney Islands, and her home forms a base for a few days for her and Hardt, plus a disillusioned Royal Navy officer, Ashington, who is prepared to betray his country. As I was watching this I was thinking, wow, am I really supposed to be rooting for them to succeed?  Surely not, especially since there is a sinister bit of business early on where German agents drug the real Miss Burnett and then throw her off a cliff. Admittedly Hardt seems a de...

I   was wanting to watch an undemanding action film to take my mind off a toothache I was suffering from, and this unnecessary addition to the Bourne franchise was made to order. It has the familiar formula: Jason (Matt Damon) is simply trying to find out more about his past, but the CIA director Robert Dewey (Tommy Lee Jones, at his most gnarly) is so worried that Jason will release incriminating info about the CIA's latest blackop projects that he will stop at nothing to have him killed. The film has two major new characters.  There is Alicia Vikander as Heather Lee, the CIA head of Cyber Ops, an ambiguous figure who ends up helping Jason for her own reasons.  And there is 'the Asset', a CIA assassin who blames Jason for being captured and tortured in Syria (played by Vincent Cassel). There's also a bit of a subplot which ends up not adding a great deal, wasting Riz Ahmed as a Mark Zuckerberg-type character. The main plot is kicked off by Nicky Parsons (Julia Stiles) ...